Lunar Beauty
by withmoonsandstars
Summary: Enjolras and Eponine share a strange bond even though they are opposites: he is in control of his emotions; she wears her heart on her sleeve. But when these two philosophy clash and their bond turns into love... Eventual E/E Modern AU
1. 1: Early Impressions from Spring

**Chapter 1 Early Impressions from Spring**

**Author's note: Hey everybody, newbie here. This is my first try at Les Mis fanfiction. Constructive criticism, ideas and reviews are always appreciated. I imagine Eponine to be Samantha Barks and Enjolras to be Aaron Tveit in this story. The setting of the museum is actually the same one from _Night at the Museum._ Okay, on with the story!**

Eponine adjusted her black blazer. She didn't like it very much; it was too stiff for her liking and it was just too boring for her. She glanced at the clock and turned around. The living room was empty; Azelma and Gavroche were still in bed.

"Azelma! If we don't hurry up, we're going to be late!"

A voice came from the hallway.

"Got it!"  
Eponine sighed and took a deep breath.

"Gavroche!"

When she didn't hear any response, she walked towards his room and slammed the door open - making a loud bang while doing so – and looked at her brother with her hands on her hips.

"It's time for school."

Gavroche was still lying in bed, hugging his elephant-shaped pillow. Upon hearing his sister's words, he opened his eyes lazily and stared at her with a defiant gleam. He turned over so that his back was facing her.

"I don't mind a few comments on my report card," he said sleepily.

Eponine narrowed her eyes at him. There was no way was she was going to let him win this. She saw the pillow that Gavroche was hugging out of the corner of her eye, that pillow that he was so fond of, and, suddenly, she got an idea.

She snuck up behind him and yanked the pillow out of his hands. Immediately, Gavroche sat up on his bed and held his hands out.

"Hey!"

Eponine held the pillow up in the air with a triumphant smile.

"Come get it," she said in a sing-song voice. Still raising the pillow high up in the air, she walked into the living room. Without second thoughts, Gavroche hopped down from his bed and followed her, running.

"Give it back to me!"

Eponine smirked. She knew this would work. When they arrived at the living room, she put the pillow down the table. Gavroche stared at her to see if she was giving up. Eponine looked completely calm. She took a seat and was beginning to take a bite of bread. Gavroche grabbed the pillow back and held it protectively.

"That was a mean thing to do," he protested.

"That," Eponine said in between mouthfuls of bread, "was the right thing to do."

She leaned towards her brother and grinned.

"Now you're fully awake and at the table to eat breakfast."

Gavroche looked defiant and stuck out his tongue at his sister. At this very moment, Azelma ran towards the table and sat down, taking bread out of its package and started eating.

Eponine looked at her siblings. It had been two years since she got custody for them and frankly, she enjoyed these mornings. Father still managed to find them, yes, but now they had their little haven in an old, modest apartment. Eponine worked as a receptionist/tour guide at the Museum of Natural History and her salary was enough to support her siblings' education. Now, Azelma had graduated and was about to start her job as a receptionist at the museum alongside Eponine. Very soon, Eponine reckoned, they would have enough money to fix some of their apartment's problems, such as the leaks from the ceiling and that one particular tile on the floor that would give a creak whenever one of them stepped on it.

Azelma stoop up and drank the last drops of water in her cup.

"I'm ready," she announced.

"Okay, let's go," Eponine said, standing up as well. She looked around: Gavroche wasn't in his chair.

"Gavroche!"

A fully dressed Gavroche appeared in front of her, looking irritated. He was panting.

"Fast enough for you, 'Ponine?"

Eponine smiled and ruffled his hair.

"Good boy."

"Good morning Eponine, Azelma," Mr. Stiller, the museum director said, nodding to each of them. They had arrived just in time.

"Good morning," they replied. Azelma didn't make eye-contact with Mr Stiller since she was a little scared at facing her boss for the first time. Eponine was more comfortable with him and greeted him casually.

"Eponine," Mr Stiller said, "just reminding you that today our new exhibit, Revolutionaries Through the Years, is opening today. I don't know why they're putting it in a Natural History Museum but I've heard all the other museums weren't available for this exhibit. Anyway, just make sure you know where it is - right next to the Africa section - when people ask you for directions."

Eponine nodded.

"Sure, Mr. Stiller."

Mr. Stiller eyed Azelma and smiled encouragingly.

"Relax. Just learn from your sister."

"Thank you, sir," Azelma said timidly.

Mr. Stiller soon left to go back to his office. Eponine started to brief Azelma over what she needed to do when the museum's first visitor of the day entered and was headed towards them.

"Excuse me," said a male voice.

Eponine looked up. It was a man in his early 20s, though he looked like more like an angel than a human being. His golden curls shone under the sunlight and his eyes were sky blue. His face was angular and perfectly carved, like a perfect statue. He seemed to radiate some kind of power just by his poise and the fierceness in his eyes. She stood up and greeted him.

Enjolras looked at the girl. She had auburn, slightly curly hair and brown, clear eyes so expressive that they could tell a story. Enjolras guessed she's what his friends would have called pretty.

"How may I help you?" Eponine asked.

"I was wondering where the new exhibit is," Enjolras said, taking a pamphlet out of his pocket and unfolded it to show the girls.

"Oh," Eponine said, recognizing that it was the new exhibit. "It's right beside the Africa exhibit. Just walk all the way down there, then turn right."

"Thanks miss," Enjolras said, giving her a nod.

"No problem, Monsieur," Eponine said, joking with him a little. Enjolras didn't seem to realize the joke; he just nodded again and walked away.

"He's so hot."

Eponine turned around to see Azelma with a dreamy looked on her face. Eponine sat down.

"He is kind of hot," she admitted. Azelma looked at her sister.

"Well, I bet you think Marius is cuter," Azelma giggled. Eponine smiled at the thought of him.

"Get back to work," Eponine urged, even though she sound amused.

While Eponine was working, she couldn't stop thinking of Marius Pontmercy, the boy she knew since high school. They were lab partners who went through numerous experiments together. Eponine fondly remembered the one time when they nearly caused an explosion; it was a fun time for both of them and soon they became best friends. Marius was nice to her, gentle and good. He was always optimistic and he often gave Eponine hope through his words of encouragement. Thus, he became one of the few bright spots in her life. She realized she was in love with him a month right after they'd met when he became the only thing on her mind. He was the first thing she thought about in the morning and the one thing she dreamt of when she went to bed.

She had been in love with him for 6 years.

It wasn't as if Eponine never tried to show how she felt. In fact, she thought she was being painfully obvious by the way that she giggled, how she would go out of her way to help him, and how she constantly flirted with him. Marius didn't seem to notice though. He never really made a serious move.

Still, Eponine was, in a way, fine with it because Marius sometimes flirted with her a little and he never had a girlfriend. Just as long as she stayed as the favorite girl in his life (like he once said), she was okay with how things were between them. Though there was still this pain from all this longing…

However, she was convinced that it would be different very soon. Marius just called last night and asked her out. He asked her to have dinner together in a French restaurant because there was something he really wanted to tell her. Eponine had a feeling that maybe; finally her dream was coming true. During these few weeks, Marius had been out of town to do an internship. Eponine missed him dearly, without seeing him so often. Maybe, just maybe… he missed her too, and that made him realize that he loved her. So maybe, tonight he would be telling her that he returns her feelings, in an expensive French restaurant, the most romantic setting they'd ever been in…

Eponine spent the rest of the day stealing glances at the clock, wishing that nighttime could come sooner. Between glances, she had helped Azelma on some documents, answered some visitors' questions and dealing with one old man who had mistaken the museum to be the British Museum. Of all the visitors entering and leaving, however, not one of them was the blonde guy they met earlier that morning. Eponine mused to herself that maybe the man was so obsessed with museums that he planned to spend his entire day there.  
She never thought her speculation would turn out to be true.

Soon, it was six in the evening. Mr. Stiller had packed all his documents and was prepared to leave. Just as he walked into the hall, he saw the Theneradiers and remembered that they needed to do something. He walked towards them.

"Hi, Mr Stiller," Azelma said timidly. Eponine looked up and greeted him as well. Mr Stiller smiled kindly at both of them.

"Ladies, do you mind locking up tonight? Our night guard just informed me that he'll be late."

They nodded and bid him goodbye. Eponine led Azelma to the night guard's room and took the spare keys. As they walked out of the room, they divided their labour.

"…so I'll go to the European, Egyptian and miniature exhibits…" Azelma said, playing with the keys.

"…and I'll go to the African and Revolutionaries exhibit," Eponine finished. She looked around and realized she was right in front of the African exhibit.

"See you," Eponine said to her sister.

"Bye," Azelma said as she walked away.

Eponine stood in front of the African exhibit and managed to pull the two halves of the gate together with some effort. She did the same with the Revolutionaries exhibit, causing a loud _bang. _

The sudden noise and the crisp sound of keys hitting each other brought Enjolras to reality. He turned away from the gaze of Charles Jeanne and noticed the gates that made him feel like a caged animal. He stood up from the bench he'd been sitting on for the last 8 hours.

"Excuse me?" he said.

No response. He took a deep breath and increased his volume, as if he was giving another of his speeches.

"EXCUSE ME!"

The voice echoed through the corridors and reached Eponine's ears.

"Oops," she said before running towards the revolutionaries' exhibit.

There she saw the blonde man she saw earlier this morning standing behind the bars, looking irritated. Eponine took her keys out and opened the gate.

"Thanks," said the man. "Perhaps it would be better next time if you checked if there's anyone in the exhibit first."

Enjolras meant well, correcting her, but his tone made Eponine defensive.

"We close at six," Eponine replied coolly, reminding him that it was his fault for not keeping track of the time. Both of them stood, staring at each other. Enjolras wasn't in the mood to have some sort of argument with a lady right now. He had better things to do.

"Good night, miss."

"Good night, sir."

Enjolras walked away briskly as Eponine watched. _What a strange man,_ she thought.

After Eponine changed into a black dress at the museum and said goodbye to Azelma, she took a cab to meet Marius. She sat inside the taxi, feeling excited and anxious at the same time. Today was her big day and she figured she could indulge herself a little by riding a taxi. During the entire ride, she could only think of Marius, the way he talked and the way he looked.

Finally, she reached her destination.

"It's perfect," she whispered to herself.

The restaurant was lit with candles, with floral wallpaper and Victorian style tables and a live band was playing Bella Notte. She looked around to find Marius.

"'Ponine!"

Eponine turned around instantly when she heard Marius' voice. He was sitting on the table in the corner, smiling and waving enthusiastically at her. Eponine smiled at the sight of him. How she had missed him.

After Eponine sat down, she noticed something was a little bit different about Marius that day. He was radiant, giddy and seemed unusually happy. Was he really that excited to see her? Eponine's heart swelled at the thought.

"I have something to tell you," he said once she sat down.

"I have something to tell you too," she said. She had been thinking about telling Marius about her feelings in the taxi. Yes, she was a little scared of being rejected but she knew that one way or another, six years of longing had to have some closure some time. Whether it was a happy ending or a sad ending, she knew that the ending has to come eventually. Besides, Marius seemed to be making a move now, wasn't he? He might love her back. If so, then she couldn't lose him by missing the chance to let him know she loved him too.

"You go first," Marius said, still very giddy and happy. Eponine took a deep breath.

"Marius," she said, "we've been best friends for such a long time and we always spend time together. But the thing is… I think I want to be more than that."

Eponine was looking into Marius' eyes. He seemed less giddy now and his mouth was hanging open upon hearing his best friend's confession. She knew this was a bad sign, but she carried on anything because there are things she knew she just had to say to him, let him know, regardless of the results.

"I've been in love with you for six years," she continued. "You are so kind and gentle. You are one of the few good things in life. You make me happier than I've ever been in my whole life. Marius, I love you."

Marius still looked shocked. He stared at her and she made an effort to lessen the pain made by his silence.

"If you don't feel the same way, it's all fine. We can still be friends," Eponine said quickly. She smiled at him, though her world was crumbling down.

Marius looked apologetic and avoided her gaze.

"Yes, yes… of course we're friends. Why on earth would you suddenly…" he said, shaking his head. Then he looked at Eponine and sighed. "Are you unhappy? Will you be alright?"

He looked concerned.

_You have no idea that what you are doing right now is what made me fall in love with you - your kindness. Please, just stop worrying about me. It hurts even more._

Eponine looked into his eyes and said "I'll be alright."

She did believe what she said at the moment.

"Don't you worry about me," she said, smiling.

Eponine was surprised at how calm she could be. Yes, at some point, she thinks she'll be alright. Yet it doesn't make her feel less of an idiot.

Marius smiled at her. He saw the old 'Ponine again and felt relieved that she seemed alright. He returned to his giddy self again.

"Do you like the restaurant?"

"Yes I do."

"You know why I chose here? I was with my grandfather in his office and this is the nearest restaurant. I was afraid that you might not like it," Marius said.

So it was just for convenience.

"I like it," Eponine said. "It's very… beautiful."

"'Ponine, I asked you to come out here because I do have something to tell you: I think I'm in love!" he said.

"Oh," Eponine said. "Who is it?"

"I don't know, I just saw her on the street today!"

"You met her today and you're in love all of a sudden?" Eponine asked. This was the second dagger to her heart. She wished he could see sense: in love with a random girl on the street?

"Yes," Marius said, looking dreamy. Suddenly, he remembered something and took his phone out.

"See?" he said, holding the phone for Eponine to look at. "She's beautiful."

He passed the phone over to Eponine. As Eponine looked at the picture, she knew the reason why Marius was in love with her. The girl was gorgeous and Marius was only a man after all.

"Yes, she is," Eponine said. Somehow, that face was a little familiar. But she couldn't remember when she saw it, so she just shook it off. She passed the phone back to Marius.

"'Ponine, can you do me a favor?" Marius asked, smiling at her.

She could never deny him anything.

"Sure."

"Can you find her for me?" Marius asked, hope evident in his eyes.

"I know a lot of things," Eponine said proudly, returning to her usual demeanor. There was a hint of sadness in her eyes, something that Marius couldn't see. "But Marius, you can't let yourself fall head over heels for a girl just after one look!"

"Love," Marius sighed, gazing at the ceiling, "doesn't need a reason."

He looked at Eponine and grabbed her hand.

"Please?"

Eponine had always treasured the times when Marius touched her. Yet this time, pain replaced joy. It reminded her that all these gestures meant nothing after all. She forced a smile.

Eponine nodded.

"You owe me big time," she joked. Marius smiled, slightly embarrassed and shrugged.

They filled their dinner with small talk.  
*

Eponine walked towards the entrance of Subway. A taxi seemed unnecessary now, as this night wasn't her special night after all. As she walked, she became more and more self-conscious of her dress and her attempts to flirt with Marius all these years. Drowned in her own thoughts, her trip home had never seemed shorter.  
Marius voice was still ringing in her head.

_We're friends…_  
_I'm in love…_  
_Love doesn't need a reason._  
_Love doesn't need a reason, all right._ She thought sarcastically._ Look how illogical I was! _

Eponine stared into space while contemplating over his words. She vaguely remembered that she needed a bath when she stepped inside the apartment. Azelma, sitting on the couch watching television, noticed her sister opening the door.

"How did it go?" she asked as Eponine took off her heels. Her sister was still staring into space. Azelma had to call her several times to get her attention.

"Eponine, Eponine?"

Eponine's mind went back to reality. Azelma looked at her curiously, eager for the new update on her sister's love life.

"I'm going to take a bath," Eponine said.

Azelma leaned back onto the couch, looking disappointed at Eponine's response. Eponine wasn't aware of this at all. After she took her bath, her iPhone made a text alert sound. She picked it up.

**_Sorry, 'Ponine. I forgot to send you the photo. How can you find her if you didn't even know how she looks? LOL That was silly of me._**  
**_Thanks 'Ponine, you are my favorite friend. =]_**

Eponine put her phone down the moment she was done reading the message.

She went to bed early, both calmed and irritated by the sound of the television. Before she drifted off to sleep, Marius' face and words still haunted her. The times they've spent together played like scenes of a movie in her head.

The laugh that Marius laughed, the way he slurs his lines sometimes, the way he looked under the moonlight…

It was too much.

She closed her eyes and forced these memories out of her mind. But as she did so, a fresh, hot tear escaped her.


	2. 2: Another Lover (part 1)

Lunar Beauty

Chapter 2 Another lover

**Author's note: Hi there everyone. A great big thank you to anyone who has read, reviewed, or favourited this story. It means a lot to me =] (A shout out to Eponine T Daae: Hey I'm a big fan of West End High and I'm glad that Enjonine made up!)**

Eponine hardly slept last night; Marius was on her mind the whole time. She was pretty sure that she had panda eyes but she didn't care. With a tired body, she went to work with Alzelma before dropping Gavroche off to school. She could barely remember anything that happened that morning, except that blonde man was continuing on his series of strange actions.

She wasn't paying attention to anything at first and was still in a bit of a daze. Then, Alzelma nudged her.

"What?" she said.

"That guy is back!" Alzelma squealed.

Eponine looked up from her desk at the counter and saw the blonde man walking into the museum with coffee. The sleeve said "Café Musain". Whatever that coffee shop is.

"Sorry, sir," she said, standing up. "No eating or drinking inside the museum."

Enjolras stopped walking. He frowned before he turned around. The girls thought he was going to leave and come back later after he had his coffee.

Instead of doing that, Enjolras stopped a random girl on the street with the girls watching, curious. The girl on the street was too busy admiring his face and just nodded to whatever he was saying. Then, he shoved the cup of coffee to the girl and headed straight back into the café. He felt he had made the correct decision. After all, he was willing to give up some caffeine in exchange for the inspiring atmosphere with all the historical figures. If there's something that he could do to achieve what he wanted, he'd do it.

He marched right into the museum and nodded to Eponine.

Eponine and Alzelma stared at him.

"Wow, that's so cool," Alzelma sighed.

"He's extreme," Eponine corrected her.

Alzelma was about to say something else about the blonde man when Mr. Stiller walked towards them with a blonde girl in tow.

"Girls," Mr Stiller said, "this is our new tourguide, Cosette Fauchlevent."

Cosette smiled at them. Eponine had her mouth hanging open the moment she laid eyes on the girl. Curly blonde hair, blue eyes and wearing a cute outfit made her look like a Barbie.

It was the girl in the picture.

"Hi," Cosette said sweetly, offering her hand. It took a moment before Eponine responded.

"Hi," Eponine said, shaking her hand. She smiled at her, but there was a hint of hostility brewing within her; it was the girl that got Marius' heart. Yet there's something else as well, a familiar feeling of loathing upon hearing her voice.

"I feel as if we've met," Eponine said.

Cosette's eyes widened for a brief moment. Then, she regained her composure.

"Ditto," she said in a casual tone, trying to make Eponine's comment sound a friendly, casual remark instead of a serious one.

Alzelma looked at her sister and Cosette. Like her sister, she felt like she had seen her face too, only she couldn't put her finger on where or when.

"I'm Alzelma," she said, breaking the awkward atmosphere.

Cosette shook her hand, though she looked a little uncomfortable. Mr. Stiller, on the other hand, was unaware of the nervous glances. He was genuinely satisfied with the fact that his workers knew each other now and so he broke the silence by clasping his hands together so hard that it sounded like a clap.

"Well, Eponine, perhaps you can show Cosette around?" Mr. Stiller asked.

All three of them whipped their heads to look at him in astonishment. Mr. Stiller, however, was oblivious. Eponine nodded, though she didn't feel like complying with the order. Something was just off about Cosette.

Cosette… Cosette… she has heard this name before, hasn't she? It was that poor slave back when she was a child. It was that Cosette!

She looked at Cosette, gaping. How much she has changed!

But she didn't have time to think this over thoroughly. Mr. Stiller noticed that the girls were in no hurry to get themselves ready for his task and was now hurrying them up.

"Come on, come on! Chop chop people!"

Eponine stood up and tried to smile.

"This way," she said to Cosette as she stepped out of the reception cubicle. Cosette followed her. Behind them, Mr. Stiller looked satisfied and left the girls.

Eponine and Cosette were in the corridors.

"We have exhibits along the corridors and many statues around the museum," Eponine said, gesturing around. Excitement overtook anxiety for Cosette as she began to look around with great enthusiasm.

"Wow! Is that Columbus?"

"Yes."

While Cosette was busying herself with examining Columbus, Eponine studied her. Cosette used to be the poor one and she used to be the superior one, the one who made Cosette feel unworthy, unloved. Now there they were: Eponine was trying to make ends meet, has a drunk, criminal father and was recently rejected by the boy she loved; Cosette looked rich with her designer clothes and that glow about her that made people think she was happy about her life. Now Cosette made Eponine feel inferior.

So much Karma.

She had to admit a part of her hoped that Marius could never find that girl in the picture, so that he'll see the light and realize that she was the one who was always beside him. Now, she's found the girl. It was as if fate decided that she should be the one to take him to her. Everything stood in their favor and the odds were against her. She had a final choice to make: To stop them from meeting and to gamble on the chance of Marius liking her back or to bring them together and crash her own dream?

The thing is, the chance of Marius liking her might be very small and he might never forgive her if he found out… Her vision became blurry.

The answer was clear but she didn't want to deal with it, not yet.

Cosette had went back to Mr. Stiller's office to go over her schedule after she and Eponine finished the tour. They didn't have much to say to each other and most of it was filled by silence, the past hanging in the air. After doing some museum event arrangements, the day was over. Eponine and Alzelma grabbed their coats and stepped out of the museum.

"You go home first," Eponine said to her sister, "I want to take a walk to… clear my mind."

Alzelma nodded.

"Sure, see you."

Eponine sighed as she looked up at the sky. Perhaps she should put everything on hold whilst she went for a Frappuccino.

By the time Eponine got back to the park, the sun had already set. She was getting tired from walking to the coffee shop and back so she chose to sit down on one of the benches.

Enjolras felt the bench move and turned to look at his left side. Eponine, feeling somebody looking at her, turned to her right side. They stared at each other and turned away when they saw who it was. Trying to ease the tension, both of them simultaneously took a sip of coffee, which made things even more awkward.

Just then, a couple walked by. The man was trying to nibble on the woman's ear, while the woman was avoiding him playfully. They were sickeningly sweet and anyone could see they were madly in love. Eponine looked at them, wondering if there was a day when she would be happily together with someone else. She wondered if anyone who came along would be better than Marius.

Marius…

Just the mentioning of Marius' name caused a little painful twitch in her heart partly due to what he said last night and partly due to her impending decision. Her thoughts built up inside her while she sat there, overwhelming her. She needed someone to talk to.

Talking to someone else about her feelings was an old habit. When she was young, she was very talkative and always talked about her feelings and thoughts to Alzelma and her parents. At that time, she never needed to keep anything from anyone, because there was no reason to. Until her father lost their inn and everyone became conning criminals, everyone was nice, genial and kind. Still, this desire of hers to talk to someone else still remained. Yet, if she told Alzelma, she would surely bring it up in the future and Eponine disliked being reminded of sad experiences.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the blonde man.

What could be better than to confide in a stranger? He wasn't in her social circle, therefore he couldn't spread it to Marius; they weren't friends, he wouldn't bring it up ever again because he wouldn't be in her life anymore. Besides, even if he judges her for what she said, he wouldn't be around long enough to do damage. It would be as if she never told anyone.

"Excuse me?" she asked the man beside her. He turned towards her, frowning.

"This may sound really weird," she said, though she couldn't believe she was talking to that blonde man, "but I need a listener right now. Are you free to do that?"

Enjolras looked at her. With a girl her age and judging from the tone of her voice, it's highly likely that she was going to talk about love issues and that wasn't the topic that he was thrilled about. He considered saying no to her, but he figured that maybe he could try to make her see sense by lecturing her how she needed to see the more important things in life. It would be serving the cause in another way by arousing awareness.

"Yes."

"You see," Eponine said, playing with the cream on her frappacino, "I like this guy and he…"

_Here we go_, Enjolras thought warily.

"…well, I thought we had a special something. This special spark. Yesterday I finally couldn't stand it and told him how I felt. It turns out he doesn't feel the same way. After that, he even asked me to find a girl for him, a girl he has a crush on," Eponine continued. At this point, Eponine paused because she felt her voice was trembling a little and she doesn't want to be that crying, weak girl.

Enjolras got no time for an emotionally troubled girl, even though empathy was starting to stir inside him. After all, what kind of guy would ask a girl, whom he just rejected, to help with his love life? Even his friend Pontmercy couldn't be that bad. Still, he couldn't understand why she couldn't get over it. After all, wasn't it clear that the boy didn't like her? Why would you keep bringing yourself pain by talking about it?

"Well, will you?" he asked, impatient.

"What?"

"Will you get them together then?" he asked, "and if it hurts you so much, why would you keep talking about it to me anyway?"

"Because I can't help thinking about him!" she cried. Several pedestrians turned to look at them. Eponine glanced at them and ignored their wow-what's-going-on faces. When she turned back to look at Enjolras, she noticed his look of exasperation.

"Yeah, I mean it!" she said angrily whilst lowering her voice to avoid attention. A man his age must have a similar experience some time in the past, right? "Have you ever been in love? Don't you know how it feels?"

"I've never had any romantic notions towards anyone."

"That explains why. Well, when you love someone, you just want them to be happy, no matter what. Today I came across the girl he liked. I'm no fan of hers and it was tempting to keep her away from him and yet…"

She took a deep breath. She had realized her decision.

"I knew I couldn't do it. I don't want Marius to lose the person he likes, like I did. When I think of his smile, it gives me the energy to do anything, anything at all just so I could make him smile," she said. Then she laughed drily, looking up to the birds flying above.

"Except, of course, I wouldn't be the true reason. It would be her, not me," she said, shaking her head. "And you know what? What hurts the most isn't sacrificing my happiness. It's the reason to why I'm doing this and knowing the fact that he would never know or care. Nope, he will just think I'm a nice person since he believes I am over him already. But for me… for me it's the proof of my love and he is blind to it."

Eponine sighed as Enjolras turned to look at her.

He heard stories about selfless love. Eponine's story wasn't new to him. Yet it was entirely another experience to see it in person. He looked into her eyes. Yesterday morning, they were clear, bright and lit with hope. Now, they were slightly duller and empty except for a gleam of fierce determination. Love is sacrifice, isn't it? Like her, he would give anything for something he holds dear. He would do anything for his fatherland. There was no questioning about it, he knew this was what he would do. In her eyes was the tale of that curse of their pathetic devotion; in her eyes was the strength of unfaltering love. It was as if some experience in their past lives has tied them together.

"I know how you feel," he said, looking into her eyes.

She smiled.


	3. 3 Another lover (part 2)

**Lunar Beauty  
Chapter 3 Another Lover (part 2)**

**_Author's Note: Hey everyone! In this chapter, the Les Amis appears! (Finally) I don't know if I wrote them completely in character, but here's my take on them. I hope you enjoy the story. _**

Five shadows projected on the wall of the HSBC ran. Pedestrians craned their necks to look for the source of the quick footsteps, panting and shouting.

The Patron-Minette crashed through the crowd, with a few policemen chasing after them, gun in their hands.

"Hands in the air! Hands in the air!" a policeman said.

The gang, however, ignored them. As the group turned at a street corner, Thénardier crouched down to loosen a metal frame leading to the sewers underneath. He slid down with ease. Montparnasse and Babet followed and entered the sewer, causing some unpleasant looking water to splash onto them. Gueulemer went after him, but was too large and got stuck.

"Give me your hand!" Thenardier cried.

It was too late. The police had caught up with them. Fearing imprisonment, the four ran away, abandoning Gueulemer.

"You bastards!" he shouted at the four diminishing figures.

"Left alone, eh?" said a smug voice. Gueulemer felt himself being pulled out of the sewer's entrance. His hands were forced into handcuffs. Some hands pushed his abdomen and forced to stand up straight. He looked around him and saw police officers all around him.

"I am now arresting you on suspicion that you were involved in a case of bank robbery this week and several others during the month," a police said to him. The policemen then looked at his superior and waited for his orders.

"Inspector Javert?"

Inspector Javert didn't look away from the sewer's entrance when he answered.

"Take him in and question him. We don't need to arrest the others. We just need one of them to spill the beans and take the others down," Javert said. The policemen nodded and waited for Guelemer to enter the police car before entering it themselves. Javert peered at the sewers.

"Scums," he said.

"Inspector Javert?"

Javert turned to see his group waiting for him. He joined them.

"Go back to the station," he said as he got onto the car.  
*

"I don't know if you realize this, Thenardier, but we're one person short," Montparnasse said lazily as he sat on a couch at Thenardier's flat.

"I know that, you idiot," Thenardier said, pacing around his living room.

"So that means we won't have anyone to look out for cops?" Babet asked, looking at his gang members. Montparnasse nodded.

"Wait a sec. What if Guelemer blabbed to the police about our plans?" Montparnasse asked.

Thenardier looked at the clock, calculating how long Guelemer have been detained.

"He might. But don't worry, all we have to do is to pull some strings with the police using the money we gained from the bank," he replied, not even looking at his gang members. "Everyone has their own price."

"Okay, suppose that is sorted. We still need someone to be on the lookout," Babet said.

Thenardier faced them.

"Montparnasse, bring back Eponine using whatever necessary means."

"Sure."

Drops of water began to fall upon the pavements. Eponine looked up to see that the sky dark and cloudy. She stopped and began fumbling around her bag.

"Come on…." She muttered under her breath. "Umbrella where are you?"

This wasn't a good day for her. After confiding to the blonde man last night, she did get some of her thoughts off her chest but now she has to think about how to make Marius and Cosette meet. She was so distracted by it that she upset Mr. Stiller by forgetting to lead a student tour. Now it was raining and she didn't have an umbrella. She was going to meet up with Marius in a Café today and she didn't want to be soaked when she saw him.

Suddenly the raindrops ceased to fall on her and a hand was holding an umbrella in front of her. Could it be…

"Marius?" she asked hopefully.

"Caught under the rain, huh?"

That casual, slimy voice.

"Montparnasse," she said, turning to face him.

He smiled a smile that did not reach his eyes when he saw her. Eponine crossed her arms and looked at the boy she once adored. Montparnasse used to be so carefree; a clever boy who always brought her out and entertained her with performing his skills as a thief. That changed when her father saw them out once and decided that he would be useful to his schemes. He went from thief to savage, savage to assassin. The streets and his job changed Montparnasse. He became ruthless and cold.

"What do you want?" she asked him, looking into his eyes with defiance.

"You look so pretty," he said, ignoring her question and tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "I would hate to scar that face."

Eponine looked away.

"Guelemer was arrested. We are one person short for our scheme. Your family needs you right now," he replied, casually twirling one of Eponine's locks.

Eponine swatted his hand away. Montparnasse's eyes narrowed at her.

"Forget it, Montparnasse. I have a decent job!" she said. "I will never, ever help you and my father again!"

She began to walk away and she was back into the rain. Before she could make it far, however, Montparnasse grabbed her waist from behind. Eponine froze and he smirked. His breath tickled Eponine's ear as he spoke.

"There are plenty of people that your father can find as your replacement, I'm sure. Nobody could resist getting a share in the large amount of money we'll be about to earn," he said slowly. His face was dangerously close to Eponine's cheek whilst he examined his prey. "I'll let you go on one condition," he whispered. He hinted at the condition by groping her thigh.

There was a brief moment when Eponine unwillingly enjoyed what he did and tilted her head backwards. There was a sense of intimacy that excited her and intrigued her. She had been attracted to Montparnasse when she was a child and a teenager because of his good looks and cleverness. Part of that lingered on till today despite meeting Marius and Montparnasse's behavior towards her.

When she saw his cold grey eyes, however, it all went away.  
She kicked his crotch in one fast movement causing him to stumble backwards, hissing in pain. He glared at Eponine. Then Eponine was off, running away.

She had no idea about where she was or how far was her from the Café she had to go. All she did was run. The sound of the footsteps became a crescendo; he was narrowing the gap between them. Eponine knew he would treat her badly if he got her. There's no way she could defeat him physically. He was much faster and much stronger than her. The way to defend herself was to deter him.

She pulled out a rape alarm –she had been carrying it around since she grew up in an insecure neighborhood- and set it off. The sharp, continuous noise the alarm made echoed through the streets. People began to look out of their window to see what's going on.

"Help! Help! He's chasing me!" she cried to the bedazzled families looking from the windows above.

Montparnasse cursed under his breath. With this amount of people watching, he couldn't tackle her now. Someone would eventually become a witness for the court if he did anything to her. He slowed down and pretended to walk casually. People began to leave their window sill and resume their activities seeing that no one was chasing the girl.

He saw Eponine stopping in front of street corner and turning into an alley. If she thought she could get away in that alley, she had another think coming…

He pulled out his knife as he turned at that corner after her. Yes, he could see her now.  
Eponine stood at the back of a café located at the alley, looking triumphant. Montparnasse froze.

"You can hurt me now in front of the customers here and be accused in court," she said as all the customers became silent, "or kill all of them and then hurt me in front of this CCTV and then get caught on tape. Or, you can leave. Take your pick."

Montparnasse smirked bitterly.

"You got lucky this time," he said.

Montparnasse hurried away as the crowds cheered. Some motherly women tried to approach Eponine to see if she needed any "counseling" while some men started to complain how "the guy with the knife" made all men look bad.

Eponine was busy assuring an elderly woman that she was fine when someone got her attention.

"'Ponine?"

Eponine turned around and saw Marius looking relieved and smiling at her.

"Hi," she said.

She could have stayed there staring at Marius' smile but she was interrupted.

"Marius, who is that fine lady?"

She looked past Marius. A group of young men was occupying a corner of the room. Some of them were drinking; some were chatting and one was scribbling on a notebook furiously. The man who spoke was standing had a beer in his right hand and his left on the back of a chair, leaning on it. He noticed Eponine's silence.

"Hi, I'm Grantaire," he said, giving her a firm handshake.

"Hey Grantaire, I thought you'd given up on girls!"

Courfeyrac's loud, cheerful voice brought everybody's attention to the new girl in their group. Except for Enjolras, who were too absorbed in his work, they all stopped what they're doing to look at her. Courfeyrac greeted her with a flourish, and after that, everybody began to introduce themselves to her. Joly, the brown haired medical student, seemed the happiest out of the group to Eponine until he started to panic about Eponine's soaked clothes.

"You have to go home now and take a bath!" he said urgently. "A hot one. You're now putting yourself in danger of contracting a virus by reducing…no, letting the cold decrease the energy inside your body. Doctor's orders!"

Eponine laughed.

"Don't fret, Joly. I feel okay right now…oh thank you, Courfeyrac," she said, saying the last part to Courfeyrac who draped his jacket over her.

"Call me Courf," he said, winking. "You haven't told me your name yet."

"Hi everybody," she said as she addressed all of them. This was such a welcoming group of people. "I'm Eponine."

"Hold on there, Eponine, there's still someone that you haven't met…" Grantaire said and gestured towards Enjolras. The group laughed at Enjolras' typical detachment.

That blonde, curly hair looked familiar to Eponine. Could it be?

Marius put his hand on Enjolras' shoulder. Enjolras stopped writing and shut his eyes in irritation, still not looking up.

"Marius, I've told you not to disturb me while I'm planning something!"

"Sorry, I just want you to meet my friend."

"Good, maybe your friend can join…"Enjolras said while lifting his head up. When his gaze moved from Marius to Eponine, his eyes widened.

That's the blonde man! I cannot believe I told him about Marius when he's friends with him!

Eponine thought.

She looked at him in disbelief as he did the same. After their chat, they have an unspoken agreement to leave everything as it were. They weren't going to become friends; they were just two strangers in the night who shared a connection.

Now, they're meeting, officially, for the first time.

"Hi, I'm Eponine," she said slowly.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Enjolras," he said swiftly. He overcame the shock and began to write in his notebook again.

Marius mistook the recognition between the two to be love at first sight. He sniggered and started to think of ways to get them together. He was cut short when Eponine tugged at his sleeve and made him sit down on one of the chairs, right beside Enjolras and the poet Jehan.

"I've found her," she told him.

Marius grinned. He was the happiest Eponine had ever seen him. She pushed on with the conversation, ignoring the tightness that she felt in her heart.

"Really? You did?" he asked.

"I did," she answered.

Eponine filled in Marius with how she had met Cosette. Enjolras wasn't paying attention to them at first, but when he felt satisfied with his speech for next week, he leaned back on his chair and started to take in bits of their conversation.

"…so maybe you can meet up with her this Tuesday? At where I work?" Eponine said.

" 'Ponine! You really are my best friend. You helped me to find the love of my life!" Marius exclaimed. He took Eponine by surprise by hugging her.

Was Marius the guy Eponine was talking about?

Enjolras was shocked. He stared at Eponine, who was resting her head against Marius' shoulder. She caught his eye.

Is he the one you were talking about? He gave her a look.

Don't you dare tell him, she glared at him.

All right, he nodded.

After Marius and Eponine parted from their embrace, he told her to go home first because he didn't want her to get sick from being cold. She couldn't stop but feel giddy with the fact that Marius was worried about her. She bid the group goodbye and began to walk home.

The rain had stopped and the sky cleared. As she walked, Eponine recalled the pain and the joy she felt when she was with Marius. This pain wasn't new to her. When Montparnasse had…  
She stopped and looked behind her. Speaking of him, was he following her? The road was as silent as it could be, bathed in a ray of moonlight.

She resumed walking, wishing that she could leave her conflicting emotions as easily as she left the street.  
*

Marius was smiling to himself when Courfeyrac came and sat next to him.

"Does Eponine have a boyfriend?"

"None that I know of," Marius replied.

The café had become much quieter after ten and so it was easier for the members of Les Amis to listen to each other's conversations. Once Courfeyrac mentioned Eponine's name, she became the discussion topic amongst the boys for the rest of their gathering.

"You aren't planning to ask her out, are you? What about Sylvia?" Combeferre asked, not looking up from his book.

Courfeyrac leaned onto the couch and stretched his arms so that his hands were behind his head.

"I asked Sylvia out in November."

"I thought you asked Grace after that," Jehan said.

"No, we broke up in February. Then I was with Anna but she ended things with me last week. I'm single once again," Courfeyrac announced.

"Stop your womanizing and come back to the really important things!" Enjolras said. "You might actually achieve something."

"I don't… womanize. I really like them. At one point they would tell me that I'm too much like a kindergartener and break things off with me! I already brought Jehan along to make up poetry but that doesn't work!" Courfeyrac cried.

"I can't spout wonderful poetry all the time. Poetry takes time and work. It's not like fast food," Jehan replied. He sighed. "Really, Courf?"

Courf looked at Jehan and grinned.

"Yeah. What else can you do when you meet an amazing girl?"

"You meet an amazing girl every month," Jehan replied.

"Now you're after Eponine," Feuilly stated.

Courfeyrac nodded.

"No, Courf. I think she should be with Enjolras," Marius said, thinking about the eye contact between the two. "Didn't you see them when they met? It was the look of fate!"

"Enjolras, seriously?" Grantaire said, laughing so hard that the beer wobbled in his cup.

"He wouldn't fight with me for her anyway Marius, he loves his work too much!" Courf said and everyone burst into laughter.

"He's right," Enjolras said.

Marius, shot down by the group, slightly slumped in his seat. Courfeyrac continued.

"I like a girl who can defend herself, like Eponine. Now I hope the men before me aren't firefighters or anything like that because that would be tough to beat… You know, girls always compare a man with the previous ones she liked."

"Marius," Joly said. Marius looked up from the spot that he was staring into the wall and looked at Joly. "You look uneasy. Was it because of that pie you had?"

"No," Marius said. "The thing is, I have to tell you that… Eponine liked me once."

Everybody became much more active in the discussion after that. Enjolras whipped his head around. Was Pontmercy going to tell everybody about Eponine? Should he stop him?

He never meddled with anyone's love life. He didn't see the reason to now.

"…I never thought she saw me that way. I know we flirt a little at times but I didn't think it was anything serious. I thought it was just a unique dynamic between two best friends," Marius was saying.

Only one person wasn't as interested in Marius' words as the others were. Sitting at the corner with beer in hand, Grantaire contemplated about the girl and Enjolras. He saw how they looked at one another, how they communicated through their eyes. He knew.

He sat there, drowning himself in alcohol and unrequited love for the man who would never love him back.

**Author's Note: ...and the plot thickens! Anyway, I would be working for some time since I got a job to kill time during my holiday. So you might need to wait a bit longer before the next chapter. Once again, thanks to anyone to read my story**.


	4. 4:Where she's coming from

**Lunar Beauty Chapter Four: Where she's coming from**

**Author's note: Hi everyone! This chapter is kind of a filler, but I think it's important because it shows Eponine's state of mind right now and how she will be pushed to "buy" Enjolras' philosophy later on. Thanks for everyone who has reviewed, favourited, followed or read this story.**

**Eponine T Daae: Aw thanks =] I can't wait for West End High's next update!**

**Smiles1998: Haha yeah so much drama. That's why I wanted to make this one with less so there is a balance.**

**...and a very late reply to MidniteMasquerade: Thanks=] I'm glad that you think the first chapter is cute.**

She was running across a field. She couldn't see anyone or hear anyone, but Eponine was sure that she was being chased by Montparnasse. In the distance, she could see a house (or was it a hotel?) that could accommodate her. She arrived there, feeling safe.

It wasn't a hotel or a house though, it was a museum. Somehow, she was staring down at the exhibits. She could see the faces of her father, her mother, her brother and sister in this museum about her life. She was looking at Marius' picture when Cosette appeared. She wasn't Eponine anymore; she was Cosette, looking at Eponine. As Cosette, she thought how she was glad that how fate favored her and that Marius was in love with her. As Cosette, she knew how they could have a life together, upstairs, where the museum had turned into an inn…

Eponine woke up. She touched her face and her hair.

"I'm still Eponine," she said to herself.

The dream reminded her of Montparnasse and how had she narrowly escaped him. Something had to be done. She got out of bed and tip toed into the living room, stepping over the one tile that made some noise. The lights were out; her siblings were sleeping. In the dark, she felt that the door was properly bolted by touching it. Still not feeling secure, she picked up some chairs and lifted them up, moving them to block the door.

"That's all I can do for now," she muttered.

Eponine returned to her bed and tried not to think of the Patron-Minette.

The next morning, Eponine found herself lying on the bed without a pillow. Her neck felt slightly sore. She stirred in her bed.

"Ha!" Gavroche said. "This is my revenge!"

Gavroche was standing beside her bed, in pajamas and fully awake.

"Where are my pillows? Give them back!" Eponine demanded. Still in bed, she tried to grab Gavroche but she was unsuccessful.

"Only if you promise to buy me a milkshake before I go to school today," Gavroche grinned.  
Eponine scratched her head and yawned.

"I knew I shouldn't have taught you that trick," she said. But she couldn't stay mad at her brother when he looked so cute in his little uniform and grinning so proudly. She liked how he was feeling happy after his not-so-enjoyable early childhood. She got up from her bed.

"Okay, but only today, alright?" Eponine said. She ruffled his hair as she walked out of the room.  
"Hey don't do that!" he protested behind her.

"I know you like it secretly," she smirked. She heard Gavroche mutter "sisters" while he stomped away.

Eponine dropped Gavroche at off school after she picked up a milkshake at the McDonalds' Drive-in. She watched him enter the school and breathed a sigh of relief before driving away.

"Did something happen?" Alzelma asked while Eponine started to drive to work.

"…why do you ask?" Eponine said.

"Because you were in the living room last night rearranging the furniture," Alzelma replied.

"I thought you were asleep."

"Well I wasn't."

Eponine looked at her, confused.

"Why did you stay up so late?"

Alzelma looked alarmed.

"…let's not talk about this now. Eponine, did something happen with Papa again?" she asked.

"Not with him, technically. It was Montparnasse, if you must know," Eponine answered.  
"Will Mama know something?"

"She's in jail, why would she know?"

"Oh right…"

They came across a red light and Eponine stepped on the break.

"Anyway, we must stick together now," Eponine said. "We have to pick Gavroche up everyday and we are not letting him ride on the subway alone. Both of us should leave work together every night."

"Okay," Alzelma said. "But what did 'Parnasse do?"

"Don't use that name!" Eponine cried. Alzelma looked taken back and stayed silent.

The red light turned green and their conversation ended once Eponine started driving again. Her mind started to drift off far away from the grey pavement and road signs…

*  
Their falling out happened when she was twelve and he was fourteen.

After they became neighbors, Montparnasse and Eponine had been inseparable. They had always spent time together until he became out of contact one day. She didn't know why Montparnasse disappeared. She only knew that he had disappeared for a few months after they bumped into a boy gang on the street. The boys and Montparnasse spoke for a while before he and Eponine went back home. She found him silent on their way home but she didn't think much of it then. The next time she called him, he wasn't picking up his phone. She called and called but he never picked up. She finally got to see him when he suddenly came back and invited her to a dinner. She was standing at an alley, watching out for the police while her parents were pickpocketing rich looking men when he tapped on her shoulder.

"Where have you been?" she asked him when he reappeared. Somehow, he looked more confident. Yet, she could feel that not only his demeanor has changed; his attitude towards her has changed as well. She smiled when she saw him, but he didn't smile back.

"Making new friends. Look," he said, looking apologetic, "I'm having dinner with them tomorrow. Are you coming?"

Finally, he had come back and he would bring her to a new and exciting world, just as he has done before. She loved how he was always involved in some new adventures: taking risks and not caring about any consequences. So she said yes.

Both of them sat with three other furtive boys at a high-class restaurant. She didn't know who had the money or where the money came from but she had a hunch that it wasn't something she would want to know. The boys didn't talk much. But when they do they would laugh simultaneously, often about a joke about a common friend. Montparnasse became a different person. He smoked and he never looked directly at her. He didn't talk to her either, unless if it was something he wanted her to do.

"Eponine," he said as they were waiting for a main course, "can you help me get that ashtray on the next table? They don't have one here."

Eponine did what he said. Then, Montparnasse kept ordering her to do more things for him. She refilled his wine, got him a glass of water and helped him finish some steak when he became too full. Finally, she had enough and she confronted him when they were walking out of the restaurant. Montparnasse was talking to his friends when she unleashed her anger.

"Are you going to talk to me or not?" she demanded.

"Why should I?"

"Because," she said, tears suddenly coming to her eyes. She wasn't expecting this. She knew that after her father made Montparnasse a thief, he became more reckless. But a mean Montparnasse? Never. "I was hoping that you would spend some time with me. "Parnasse, we've always spent time together and you had always been my friend. What happened?"

Montparnasse's friends wolf-whistled. Some of them clapped their hands.

"Woah!"

"Monty, look after your little sister well!" one of them said mockingly.

Montparnasse was speechless. Regret flashed in his eyes for a moment and disappeared.

"This is the new me," he said to her. "Take me or leave me."

She looked at him.

"Do I mean that little to you?" she asked. When they were young, they had always been together. He would give her flowers, stolen from their neighbour's backyard; they would lie on the grass stargazing; they had even promised that they would marry each other. Eponine knew, in hindsight, that it was puppy love. But at the time to her younger self, he was her soulmate. To have something ripped from her so violently was painful. "Can't you be your old self for me?"

"Why should I?" he said, "You are just my old neighbor."

The boys laughed, thinking that Montparnasse was cool for dissing his old friends like that.

Montparnasse felt obliged to conform. He smirked nervously.

"I see," she said grimly. "So you invited me just to show off you have control over someone, such as "your little sister" to look cool. I am not going to let you do this to me."

He stared at her as she walked away.

Ever since that night, it was as if there was an invisible wall between them. Whenever Montparnasse talked to Eponine, it was because she had something he wanted. Eponine would usually ignore him and when she didn't, it was to defend herself from his advances and requests.

She never forgave him for this even though he always tried to flatter her and get on to her good side again. Sometimes she wondered if he was trying to seduce her just to take advantage of her. What if he really cared about her? What if this was a misguided attempt to earn her forgiveness?

_He changed_, she told herself, _and you must accept it. You can't go all desperate in order to fall in love again after Marius. He can't compensate. _

"Stop! Stop!"

Alzelma's cry woke her up from her daydream. Eponine stepped on the break.

"What is it? What happened?" Eponine asked, looking at her sister.

"You nearly hit someone!" Alzelma said, looking back at Eponine.

"Really?"

Eponine looked ahead and saw a familiar man standing in front of her car, looking shocked but otherwise unharmed.

"Marius?"


	5. 5: Realizations

**Chapter 5: Realizations**

**Author's note: Hi there everyone! Sorry for the delay. It's been a turbulent week and I'm in in uncertainty regarding my further studies... Anyway, on with a story and a big thank you to anyone who has read, followed, favourited, or reviewed this story. =] This one has more Enjonine interactions and I hope it compensates for the lack of it in the last chapter. **

**To Ivy Green: Thanks for the compliment! I hope that reading it gives you as much joy as I get while writing it. **

"Ponine!"

Marius seemed surprised to see Eponine, who rushed out of the car and hugged him. Azelma, still in the car and not sure of what she should do, took out her phone and began to browse through it.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I nearly hit you!" Eponine apologized.

Marius laughed.

"That's okay."

He let go of her. Eponine beamed at him. It was nice that she got to see him before she began working.

"Why are you here?" she asked, suddenly realizing the obvious question.

Marius turned giddy.

"To see the love of my life! Oh Eponine, you have reminded me of how much I need to see her right now. Let's get into the car right now!"

He ran towards the car but Eponine grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"Marius," she said, trying to share some of her newly-learnt philosophy with him so that he might avoid feeling the same pain as she did. "You don't even know if she likes you back, so don't expect too much."

"Relax, 'Ponine," Marius chuckled. "She will like me back. I can feel it in the air!"

Eponine didn't know what else to say so she just followed him as he made his way to the car. On the way to work, none of them said anything to the other. All of them were immersed in their own imaginary world about love.

It was a quiet day at the museum. Azelma and Eponine found Marius a chair at the reception. Eponine told him to wait there until Cosette appeared. Marius did what she said, peeking about, hardly able to contain his excitement. He continued to sit there while Azelma and Eponine went to get the keys back from the night guard. When they came back to the reception, Cosette was still nowhere to be found.

"Where's Cosette?" Azelma asked. "She's late for work!"

"I don't know," Eponine said, getting angry over the fact that Cosette wasn't responsible enough to arrive on time. Even though the little voice in her head told her that she was jumping to conclusions. _Would I ever get rid of this hatred?_ She wondered.

"Maybe you can call her?"

"I don't have her number!" Eponine snapped.

Azelma and Eponine were looking at each other. Azelma noticed that her sister was expressing something other than hatred with what she said.

"Ep," she said quietly, "I'm sorry."

Eponine sighed. She nodded to acknowledge Azelma's words. Suddenly, they heard hurried footsteps and saw someone rushing towards the door. It was Marius. Eponine began to chase after him.

"What are you doing? She isn't here…" Eponine shouted. She was cut short when she saw a blonde girl outside the door.

"Yet," she finished.

Marius grabbed the girl's arm and they began talking. Eponine couldn't hear any words whilst she observed through the glass. She stood there, numb. Neither wanting to leave or going out and greeting them. A voice came behind her.

"I'm sorry," Enjolras said, not sounding totally empathetic. He couldn't understand still why she would watch the two lovers and torture herself.

Eponine didn't look at him.

"I just hoped that… he'd see me."

He couldn't understand what she was saying, so he just walked away. When Eponine returned to the reception area, she found herself eager to start working. She took calls, welcomed visitors enthusiastically and even offered to fill in as tour guide when Rebecca, the tour guide, called and said she was ill. It was a school tour and the children were chatty and noisy. Eponine didn't mind the noise; she was glad that she had something to distract herself.

An hour later, their tour had progressed to the Revolutionaries through the years. The children were really excited and asked all sorts of questions about the exhibitions, which Eponine was unable to answer: she had forgotten to study the pamphlet Mr Stiller gave her.

"Who is he?" asked one young girl.

Eponine was thinking of what to say next when Enjolras saved her.

"He's Sun Yat San, a Chinese revolutionary in the early 1900s who overthrew the Qing dynasty and became the first ever president in China," Enjolras said as he walked towards the group.

The kids were satisfied with Enjolras' answer and turned their attention to the other exhibits. Eponine, who wanted to escape from another moment of embarrassment, told the children to disband look around in the area. She sat down next to Enjolras, who went back to his seat.

"Thanks," she said to Enjolras.

"There's no need to thank me. I just knew something they didn't and I wanted to enlighten them," Enjolras said.

"You know a lot about revolutionaries, don't you?"

Enjolras didn't plan to have a long conversation. He changed his mind when the topic changed to his favourite subject.

"Yes. I've been studying them since I was young. All of these inspiring individuals were spirited, determined and had a vision. It's a comfort to know that there were such people. They are truly inspiring. These are the people who made me believe in humanity."

"I see," Eponine said. "making me believe in humanity won't be an easy feat."

"So you're a cynic, then?" Enjolras said, suddenly feeling a little dislike towards this girl.

"I'm more of a skeptic," she replied. Enjolras was about to ask her more but he was cut short.

Eponine felt someone tug at her sleeve. She looked down and saw a young boy.

"Miss Tourguide? Can we go home now, please? PLEASE?" he said.

"Oh, the time!" Eponine exclaimed, standing up at once. She turned to Enjolras.

"Tell me more about the revolutionaries next time we meet anyway. I want to know more," she said. She smiled at him and left to gather the children.

Enjolras didn't take his eyes off her until she left. When she did, he raised his eyebrows and whispered "A skeptic?".

Eponine's car pulled up in front of Gavroche's school. Eponine kept checking the strets to see if anyone suspicious was lurking by. Azelma noticed this.

"Don't worry, Ep. We're in a car after all."

"A car isn't going to stop them," she replied. "I'll stay here and you go pick up Gavroche. Be careful, okay? I'll watch out for any shady guy for you."

Azelma stepped out of the car while Eponine waited for her. Ten minutes later and they still haven't appeared. Eponine started to worry. Just when she was about to call Azelma, she received a text.

**I need to wait for Gavroche. A teacher is talking to him inside the classroom.**

Eponine relaxed a little and texted her back.

**Okay, I'll park the car fist. Call me when you can leave. **

The street where Eponine had parked her car was quiet and no one else was in sight. Eponine started to feel insecure since this made it easy for anyone to attack her because there wouldn't be witnesses. Knowing that Gavroche and Azelma were inside the school with other people and would be safe, Eponine decided to go to a bookstore across the road called Belle.

It was a messy bookshop; most of the books were stacked carelessly upon one another in no particular order.

"That's intense," Eponine remarked before going to one pile and reaching for "Peaks and Valleys".

A hand appeared beneath her arm.

"Sorry," she said and grabbed "Peaks and Valleys" quickly so that she won't delay the person getting his book. Out of curiosity, she glanced at the man.

"Enjolras?"

"Eponine!"

Enjolras looked just as surprised as she was.

"Why am I always running into you?" she said, laughing a little.

"…well, coincidence," Enjolras said, not sure of how to answer her.

"That must be it," she said.

Enjolras didn't know what to say so he opened his book and began to read. He glanced at her to see if she was ending this conversation as well but instead, he saw Eponine checking her phone and sending a message.

She walked towards the door.

"Bye," she said.

"Bye," he said, turning around to make eye contact.

He saw her running towards two other people. One was a kid and Enjolras recognized the other girl as the second receptionist at the Museum. Eponine held hands with the child. It was obvious that they were a family. It was way past the time for schools to dismiss their students. Why did Eponine have to pick the child up? He kept looking at them when they got into the car and Eponine sat in the driver's seat. It was obvious that she was the one who had to take care of both of them, he thought. Such a strange girl, she seemed so vulnerable in love and yet so strong, looking after the two of them.

He rushed out onto the street, still not looking away from the car that was driving away. She would be an interesting addition to their group…adding a different dynamic.

"Hey!" the shopkeeper yelled. "Too busy chasing girls? That book isn't free, you know!"

Enjolras walked back into the shop, not amused in the least.


End file.
